Question: It is said that we should give up our material activities
and increase our devotional service, but how to harmonise it if a person has
to work hard to maintain their family?

They can do everything within their family life as devotional activities,
because actually it is not their family, it is Krishna's family. If they
think it is their family, it is a problem; but if they think that it is
Krishna's family, then whatever they do will be for Krishna.

If you have children, taking care of these children is also service to the
Lord. You can teach them how to practise devotional activities, and that
child will be a devotee, will serve the Lord and the Guru. Everything is for
Krishna, and you can turn your house into a temple.

In this world people know only exploitation and renunciation, but Prabhupad
Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur and Mahaprabhu explained that Krishna
is the biggest enjoyer in this world—no one can enjoy more than
Krishna. All gopis also said, "We do not want renunciation, we do not want to
go to the jungle and chant. We want You to stay and enjoy with us." This is
very important for our spiritual life—we do not want a life of
renunciation, we do not like that, but we want to live a happy life with the
Lord, to live a happy life through Krishna consciousness.

Question: Externally, Pundarik Vidyanidhi used to behave as an
ordinary person, and sometimes we may become confused—how can it be
possible that such great personalities can behave like an ordinary
soul?

Mahaprabhu would always call Pundarik Vidyanidhi 'baba', father. In
Dvapar-yuga, he is Radharani's father, King Vrisabhanu, and in Kali-yuga he
becomes Pundarik Vidyanidhi. Mahaprabhu knew this and gave much honour to him
although Pundarik Vidyanidhi was a householder.

Pundarik Vidyanidhi was a rich man, looking like a landlord, and he would
always chew some pan (a mixture of tobacco, pulses, nuts, etc.) and spit it
out at a wall. Everyone was appalled, "What is this dirty man doing?"
People did not like him, and even Gadadhar Pandit was surprised to see
Pundarik Vidyanidhi's behaviour, but when he asked Mahaprabhu to give him
initiation, Mahaprabhu said, "Your Guru is coming, wait for him," and later
He told Gadadhar Pandit to take initiation from Pundarik Vidyanidhi.

Also, how can you understand that Bhakti Vinod Thakur is a great personality?
He was actually saptam Goswami, the seventh Goswami, but he would mix with
aul, baul, kartta-bhaja, with all these bad people of apa-sampradaya. He knew
why he mixed with that kind of misconception. When he was in Krishna Nagar,
he saw that Mahaprabhu's conception had been lost and there was much
misconception going on instead, and because he wanted to purify, conquer the
people with this kind of mentality, he had to mix with them.

Gurudev also sometimes mixed with such people. There was a very big man who
donated the money to build a house for the goshala in Nabadwip, but he smoked
a pipe. Once he asked Gurudev, "Do you know what my pipe is saying?" Gurudev
joked, "Yes, it is saying, 'Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna.'" Gurudev also mixed
with such kind of people, but anyhow, later, that man became a great
devotee.

So, how can you understand such personalities? Sometimes their behaviour
seems bad, but they are actually great. You cannot understand who they are by
their appearance.

Das Goswami Prabhu also—when he first went to meet Mahaprabhu, at first
Mahaprabhu told him to go back to his house, and he did that: he got married
and led a household life. The grihastha people say, "Oh, but he left his wife
and again went to Mahaprabhu"—they think bad, but it was necessary to
rescue us, the jiva souls, to rescue all universe.

Until you have reached a particular stage, level of realisation, you cannot
understand who is a devotee and who is not just by their external behaviour.
You must reach that stage, then you can understand it.